252 pages
6 x 9
“Informed, utterly blindsiding account.” - Booklist, starred review
It’s falling from the sky and in the air we breathe. It’s in our food, our clothes, and our homes. It’s microplastic and it’s everywhere—including our own bodies. Scientists are just beginning to discover how these tiny particles threaten health, but the studies are alarming.
In A Poison Like No Other, Matt Simon reveals a whole new dimension to the plastic crisis, one even more disturbing than plastic bottles washing up on shores and grocery bags dumped in landfills. Dealing with discarded plastic is bad enough, but when it starts to break down, the real trouble begins. The very thing that makes plastic so useful and ubiquitous – its toughness – means it never really goes away. It just gets smaller and smaller: eventually small enough to enter your lungs or be absorbed by crops or penetrate a fish’s muscle tissue before it becomes dinner.
Unlike other pollutants that are single elements or simple chemical compounds, microplastics represent a cocktail of toxicity: plastics contain at least 10,000 different chemicals. Those chemicals are linked to diseases from diabetes to hormone disruption to cancers.
A Poison Like No Other is the first book to fully explore this new dimension of the plastic crisis, following the intrepid scientists who travel to the ends of the earth and the bottom of the ocean to understand the consequences of our dependence on plastic. As Simon learns from these researchers, there is no easy fix. But we will never curb our plastic addiction until we begin to recognize the invisible particles all around us.
"Informed, utterly blindsiding account."
Booklist
"This is a lucid, distressing look at a growing environmental concern."
Publishers Weekly
"Journalist Matt Simon’s urgent new book A Poison Like No Other: How Microplastics Corrupted Our Planet and Our Bodies is classified as environmental science but could comfortably be labeled as horror… densely reported; nearly every sentence is a harrowing, footnoted stat... isn’t necessarily a fun read. But it is unforgettable."
San Francisco Chronicle
"An urgent call to action aimed at curbing the introduction of microplastics into the environment."
Kirkus Reviews
"Essential...shocking...Reading this book will fundamentally change your own relationship with plastic."
Lloyd Alter, Treehugger
"Looks at how [plastics] all went wrong...It’s an important book but a hard one to read..."
Washington Independent Review of Books
"From the bottom of the ocean to the heights of Mount Everest, the author somehow manages to tell the story of this pervasive poison with engaging storytelling and powerful visual imagery. A single-use plastic bag will never look the same."
The Verona Press
"An authoritative, unflinching account of how plastics built the modern world, then contaminated every corner of it. Simon is a sharp guide to the science of this slow-moving, often invisible catastrophe, the consequences of which are only just now beginning to be understood. This book disturbs, provokes, and delights. It is an urgent read."
Megan Molteni, science writer, STAT
"Fascinating dive into a ubiquitous but under-the-radar pollutant. This book will change how you look at everything: your baby’s toys, your favorite pants, and climate change policy. Throughout, Simon's jaunty writing will keep a wry smile on your face."
Danielle Venton, science reporter, KQED
"Keeping up with the new science on microplastics is a full-time job for specialists. Thank goodness for Simon, who helps the rest of us understand the state of the science and what’s at stake. This is a growing problem, and this book is a timely snapshot taken at a critical moment in the history of plastic pollution."
Rebecca Altman, PhD, writer and environmental sociologist
Introduction
Chapter 1. Welcome to Planet Plastic
Chapter 2. A Voyage on the Synthetic Seas
Chapter 3. A Land Corrupted
Chapter 4. Breathe Deep the Plastic Air
Chapter 5. Turning Down the Plastic Tap
Acknowledgments
Notes
About the Author
Index
Microplastics are everywhere. They’re in the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat. They’re small enough to enter our cells, and they can mimic our hormones. Scientists are only beginning to understand the long-term impacts these invisible contaminants have on our bodies—many have been linked to diseases, from diabetes to certain cancers. Plastics are a risk to all of us—made up of over 10,000 chemicals that are harmful to our health and the planet.
Join us on October 27 for a conversation with Matt Simon, author of the new book, A Poison Like No Other: How Microplastics Corrupted Our Planet and Our Bodies, as we discuss the harmful impact microplastics have on our environment and our bodies. Joining Matt will be Dr. Deonie Allen & Dr. Steve Allen of Plastic Pollution News.
Matt Simon, science journalist at Wired magazine, has published the first book to fully explore the threat of microplastics. Publishers Weekly describes A Poison Like No Other as a “lucid, distressing look at a growing environmental concern.” In this webinar, Simon will share how the study of microplastics began in the sea but has now moved to land, the atmosphere, and human health. This presentation will give a brief overview of the current science of microplastics and the scientists who travel to the ends of the earth and the bottom of the ocean to understand plastic pollution.
Ocean Conservancy invites members of the media and the public to join an hour-long discussion and Q&A session on the prevalence and impacts of microplastic pollution and solutions to the problem. The event will be moderated by Dr. Chelsea Rochman, Assistant Professor of Aquatic Ecology at University of Toronto; and paneled by Dr. Britta Baechler, Ocean Conservancy’s Associate Director of Ocean Plastics Research; Dr. Anja Brandon, Ocean Conservancy’s Associate Director of U.S. Plastics Policy; and Matt Simon, science journalist at Wired Magazine and author of the recently published book about microplastics, A Poison Like No Other.
Microplastics – plastic particles less than 5mm – are a fast-growing area of scientific research. Due to their small size, they are easily distributed and have reached every corner of our planet, from deep ocean trenches to the tallest mountain peaks, showing up in our food, drinking water, and organs. They absorb and leach toxic chemicals with known negative impacts on the ocean and other ecosystems. Increasingly, policymakers are evaluating if and how to regulate these pollutants. Last year, California became the first state to mandate microplastic testing for drinking water; and global leaders are considering including microplastics provisions as part of the ongoing UN negotiations for a global plastics treaty.
See the media advisory.
UDC Research Week 2023, and the UDC Bio/Chem Club, invites you to join Matt Simon as he discusses his new book, A Poison Like No Other.
Microplastics are tiny particles of plastic that are increasingly found in our soil, water, wildlife and the food we eat. In fact, studies have shown that we may be consuming about a credit card’s worth of plastic each week. The full health impacts of microplastics on humans and wildlife are still being studied, but we know that many plastics contain toxic chemicals.
Plastic is a serious problem, and it’s time we address it at its source. Join us to learn from experts in the field about microplastics, links to the fossil fuel industry, and solutions we can work toward to protect ourselves and our environment from plastic pollution.
This event is part of Food & Water Watch's Livable Future LIVE monthly virtual event series.
Live captioning
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It’s falling from the sky and in the air we breathe. It’s in our food, our clothes, and our homes. It’s microplastic and it’s everywhere — including our own bodies. Scientists are just beginning to discover how these tiny particles threaten health, but the studies are alarming.
Matt Simon, a nine-year veteran science journalist at Wired magazine, reveals a whole new dimension to the plastic crisis in his book, A Poison Like No Other. Join him in a webinar on Thursday, July 20 at 12:00 PM ET as he dives deep into our plastic pollution crisis. The conversation will be moderated by Shilpi Chhotray, co-founder and executive director at Plastic Over People. Simon weaves humor with humility together as he discusses this difficult topic. You’ll emerge from the webinar ready to fight for a plastic-free future.
Get 25% off the book with code REALITY from https://islandpress.org/books/poison-no-other.
Plastic is everywhere. The air we breathe, the foods we eat, the homes we live in, and the bodies we occupy are filled with micro- and nanoplastics. As plastic continues breaking down into tinier pieces, it infiltrates every element of our world. How is this toxin affecting our bodies and the bodies of our children?
Two-thirds of all cancer cases are linked to preventable environmental causes. Medical advances continue to improve disease treatment, yet cancer still claims the lives of one in five men and one in six women in the US. Is the rise in cancer related to a rise in plastic pollution?
We can’t buy our ways out of the omnipresence of plastic pollution. It’s time for a different approach. One where we venture beyond personal responsibility and into the sphere of corporate accountability and political will.
Join Island Press for a conversation with Kristina Marusic, author of A New War on Cancer: The Unlikely Heroes Revolutionizing Prevention, and Matt Simon, author of A Poison Like No Other: How Microplastics Corrupted Our Planet and Our Bodies. Judith Enck, president of Beyond Plastics, Bennington College professor and former EPA regional administrator, will moderate and add her powerful perspective.
For September’s CHE-Alaska webinar, we will be joined by science journalist Matt Simon, author of “A Poison Like No Other: How Microplastics Corrupted Our Planet and Our Bodies.” In the book, Simon reveals an entirely new dimension to the plastic dilemma – how microplastics break down into small enough pieces to enter lungs, be absorbed by crops, and infiltrate aquatic animals’ muscle tissues. Unlike other contaminants that are single elements or have simple chemical structures, microplastics represent a cocktail of toxicity: plastics can contain as many as 10,000 different chemicals – some which are linked to diseases from diabetes to cancers and other endocrine disrupting disorders.
Simon will also discuss how this latest aspect of the microplastic crisis pertains to the Arctic – which is becoming increasingly contaminated. In a recent article Simon published on Wired, he writes, “As scientists have shown elsewhere, the team found that microplastics contamination in the Arctic has been growing exponentially and in lockstep with the growth of plastic production—which is now up to a trillion pounds a year, with the global amount of plastic waste projected to triple by 2060.” CHE-Alaska is part of CHE’s broader network, an international partnership of nearly 5,000 individuals and organizations across 87 countries and all 50 US states dedicated to addressing environmental impacts on human health across the lifespan.
We encourage you to become a CHE partner so you can receive our monthly email newsletters, announcements about upcoming webinars, and other updates on a range of environmental health topics. Visit www.healthandenvironment.org to learn more. We invite you to join the CHE-Alaska partnership and our monthly webinars.
About the speaker: Matt Simon is a science journalist at Wired magazine, where he covers the environment, biology, and robotics. He’s the author of two previous books, Plight of the Living Dead: What Real-Life Zombies Reveal About Our World—and Ourselves and The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar: Evolution’s Most Unbelievable Solutions to Life’s Biggest Problems. He enjoys long walks on the beach and trying not to think about all the microplastics there.
Microplastics and nanoplastics have infiltrated every corner of the environment, as well as the human body. Science journalist and author Matt Simon talks about his recent book, A Poison Like No Other: How Microplastics Corrupted Our Planet and Our Bodies, covering the ecological, climate, and human health impacts of this dangerous pollutant.
This webinar is sponsored by the Delaware Valley University, DelVal One Health Working Group. One Health is the trans-disciplinary approach that works locally, regionally, nationally, and globally to attain optimal well-being for people and society, the environment, and plants and animals. Together, the three major components make up the One Health triad, and the well-being of each is inextricably linked to the others in the triad.
In an op-ed published in collaboration with the Urban Resilience Project, Matt Simon (author of A Poison Like No Other) explains why every government should distribute microfiber filters to its citizens, free of charge, to help keep microplastic particles out of the environment.
Simon writes:
Our clothing is a major source of these particles: Two-thirds of garments are now made of synthetic fibers. We have removable lint filters on our clothes dryers, which keeps the fluff from accumulating and catching on fire. But we don’t have microfiber filters on our washing machines—at least, not yet. France is leading the way with new regulations, requiring that all machines come with filters pre-installed by 2025.
Read the full article published in The Progressive HERE.